


No Reason to Be Bored

by navaan



Category: Doctor Who (2005), Torchwood
Genre: Alien Planet, Innuendo, Jack Harkness Flirts, M/M, Time Travel, Timey-Wimey, Vacation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-06
Updated: 2018-09-06
Packaged: 2019-07-07 19:29:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15914784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/navaan/pseuds/navaan
Summary: Jack is taking a prolonged vacation from Torchwood not sure where to go next. He visits a religious ceremony and meets a Doctor.





	No Reason to Be Bored

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the prompt _14: Ermentrude the Colossal/objects/a gem/while bored to tears_ for the wintercompanion [The Summer/Winter Holidays 10](https://wintercompanion.dreamwidth.org/260208.html) \- it was first posted [here](https://wintercompanion.livejournal.com/269795.html).

Jack had a good view of the proceedings from the perch of one of the towers. For two years he had been travelling, taking his leave from Torchwood 57 for the time being. He'd served for thousands of years and sometimes even an old "fact" like Jack needed his vacation. He had not yet decided if he was going back or not.

One day he would. But when?

“Don't look so bored, Jack,” someone said from his side. “Wonders of the universe revealed every day. Like Ermentrude the Colossal.“

He turned slightly to see the Doctor had appeared beside him – a seemingly young man with a crooked smile, dark brown bangs and an old man's tweed jacket and a bow tie that fit his eyes better than the rest of him. Or perhaps, if Jack looked closer at the way the man was wringing his hands as if he couldn't wait for what was going to happen next, the young face matched the rest of his nervous stance better than the eyes.

Nothing matched and yet everything fell together.

It was endearing and familiar in a very Doctor kind of way.

“Look at that,” the Doctor urged.

Below them the shrine doors opened and on a huge pedestal surrounded by three priests of the Holy Order of Ermentrude the glistening pink shine of the biggest gem in the universe blinded the crowd. Silence settled over the mass of people and then cheering started up in waves, building into a deafening crescendo of awe and joy. Once every ten years the gem that people called the “Light of the Galaxy” was on display like this.

“No wonder they call it Ermentrude the Colossal.” Jack grinned at the Doctor. The gem was in fact as big as the humanoids surrounding it and it shone with the soft glow of a winter star. It was beautiful. Even in his eternal existence, Jack had never seen anything like it.

“That's not why it bears that name,” the Doctor said cryptically. Jack could only catch sight of his profile: He looked sad, haunted by the knowledge of the Time Lord, the all knowing time traveller.

“What?” Jack asked.

Suddenly the Doctor grinned again and made an all encompassing gesture. “You're no longer bored.”

“It's never boring when you're around.” He tried one of his flirtiest smiles.

“Ahh, Jack, still the old charmer.” The Doctor wriggled his fingers and then straightened his bow-tie. “What if I tell you, that the dear Ermentrude, used to be as humanoid as you and me, about three hundred thousand years ago? And that...” he spoke in a low voice and pointed down towards the huge gem, “is so useful to the priest of her order, because it's _her_ , has always been her. Trapped in a forever form. Sentient. Endless. Forever doing their bidding. Speaking of her knowledge of the ages to empower others.”

“That sounds terrible,” Jack said, appalled.

The Doctor jumped up as if he’d been electrified. “Isn't it? I knew you'd empathize!”

“And here I was thinking you had come to greet an old friend.” Jack let his shoulders sag and rolled his eyes.

“Oh, Jack,” he said. “I saw you just last week, and that was _fun_.” The Doctor turned once around his own axis and kept his arms up as if he was implying a dance for two. “Real fun. And I knew you’d be here, because I know where you are if I think about it hard. I've come to say hi to an old friend I've not seen in a long time though. Her. Now, now. First you look bored, then you look disappointed. And now…?”

Jack grinned. He had honed in on the important part of the rambling. “You feel where I am when you think about me?”

“When I think _hard_ , Jack, that’s…”

“So romantic,” Jack talked over him before he could ruin the moment. “Tell me more about the dancing. I remember no dancing.”

“Spoilers,” the Doctor said and frowned, his eyes flitting away as if he had just remembered something else. “We’re both not the diary keeping types, are we?”

“We do keep track,” Jack said, not even bothering to ask what that meant. He’d travelled with the Doctor - different Doctors - often enough to realize that some things would simply never be explained; some _would_ when the Doctor was ready for explanations. “So, you saw me last week, we had _a lot of fun_ and you _know_ I’m here to watch the ceremony, so you say hello?”

Getting the Doctor back on track was only possible if the Doctor wanted to get back on track, but Jack had learned a trick or two in his incredibly long life.

“Hello,” the Doctor said and wriggled his fingers in greeting. It looked cute when he uncertainly studied Jack from under long brown bangs. “I _knew_ you were here. And then I couldn’t help but notice you looked bored.”

“And now we’re going to have fun?”

“So much fun,” the Doctor grinned and his eyes drifted back down to the ceremony. “Heists are always exciting.”

“Heists? Are you suggesting...” Jack looked around himself carefully before whispering, “...steal the biggest known gem in the history of the universe?”

“Yes,” the Doctor answered quickly, “and no. Think of it as a rescue mission. Dashing heroes marching in and freeing the poor enslaved Ermentrude.”

He had no idea what to think of it. “She was humanoid?”

“And a stunning sight to behold. She deserves so much better. Freedom. Rest. Peace. Whatever she wants. Her eternal existence should be a good one.”

 _Eternal thing like me,_ Jack thought and then looked over at the Doctor. “I can never resist a challenge. But I have one request.”

“Drinks?” the Doctor guesses.

“Lot’s of _dancing_.”

The Doctor’s grin widened. “If you insist. After the heist we might be on the run for a while.”

He grinned like a little kid.

Apparently this regeneration enjoyed running as much as the ones he’d met. 

Sounded like Jack was invited for a longer stay on the Tardis.

There was only one answer: “I’m in.”

The Doctor’s eyes shone with delight. “To the rescue!” he shouted and grabbed Jack’s hand to pull him along.

Possibly this was going to be more fun than the dancing - figurative or literal.

**Author's Note:**

> You can follow me for fic updates on [tumblr](https://navaanwrites.tumblr.com/) and [twitter](https://twitter.com/navaanwrites). This fic has a post on the tumblr [here](https://navaanwrites.tumblr.com/post/177808517294/fanfiction-doctor-who-no-reason-to-be-bored) in case you want to share it. It also has a page on my [Dreamwidth](https://navaan.dreamwidth.org/619838.html).


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